Fellowships

The Fulbright-Kalam Climate Fellowships are designed to build long-term capacity to address climate change-related issues in India and the U.S.

Fulbright-Kalam Climate Fellowship fields include, but are not limited to: clean energy technologies and energy transition; climate and health; climate finance; climate justice and equity; climate resilience, mitigation, and adaptation; climate-smart agriculture; climatology; critical and emerging technology (including applied AI for climate/agriculture, harnessing high-performance computing/quantum computing for climate mitigation, and biotech); critical minerals supply chains; disaster resilience; green mobility, green buildings and construction; oceanography; renewable energy; sustainability.

These fellowships are designed for Indian faculty and researchers who are in the early stages of their research careers in India. Fulbright-Kalam Climate Fellowships will provide opportunities to talented faculty and researchers to strengthen their research capacities. Postdoctoral fellows will have access to some of the finest resources in their areas of interest and will help build long-term collaborative relationships with U.S. faculty and institutions. These fellowships are for eight to 24 months.

Affiliation
The selected candidate will be affiliated to one U.S. host institution.

USIEF strongly recommends all applicants to identify institutions with which they wish to be affiliated, and to correspond, in advance, with potential host institutions. If the applicant has secured a letter of invitation from a U.S. institution, it should be included as a part of the online application. The letter of invitation should indicate the duration of visit, preferably with dates.

Grant Benefits

These fellowships provide J-1 visa support, a monthly stipend, Accident and Sickness Program for Exchanges per U.S. Government guidelines, round-trip economy class air travel between India and the U.S., a modest settling-in allowance, and a professional allowance.

Subject to availability of funds, a dependent allowance and international travel may be provided for one accompanying eligible dependent provided the dependent is with the grantee in the U.S. for at least 80 per cent of the grant period.

Eligibility Requirements
In addition to the General Prerequisites:

• Applicants must have a Ph.D. or D.M. degree within the past four years. They must have obtained a Ph.D. or D.M. degree between July 15, 2020 and July 14, 2024. The applicants are required to upload their Ph.D. or D.M. degree certificate/provisional on the online application;
• Applicants must have a publication in reputed journals. They must upload a recent significant publication (copy of paper/article) on the online application (not exceeding 30 pages); and
• If applicant is employed, please follow the instructions carefully regarding employer’s endorsement. If applicable, obtain the endorsement from the appropriate administrative authority on the Letter of Support/Employer’s Endorsement from Home Institution. The employer must indicate that leave will be granted for the fellowship period. Candidates working under government-funded projects are also required to get endorsement from their affiliating institutions in India.

Note: In the application, the applicant is required to indicate the period in which they can complete the proposed project in the United States. The applicant must determine grant duration carefully. Should they be selected for a grant, it will be for the period specified in their application. The duration cannot be changed.

The online application system may display a pop-up message indicating that the grant duration cannot exceed 12 months. Please disregard that message. You are allowed to choose a Fulbright-Kalam Climate fellowships for Postdoctoral Research grant duration between 8 and 24 months.

How to Apply

1. Applications must be submitted online at: https://apply.iie.org/fvsp2025
    
2. Please carefully review the Application Instructions before starting your online application.
    
3. Please refer to the Applicant Checklist before submitting the application.
    
4. In addition, you must complete and upload the Letter of Support from Home Institution on your online application (if applicable).

Application Deadline: July 15, 2024, 23:59:59 hrs (IST)
 

For any queries contact: postdoc@usief.org.in

Timeline and Placement Process
 

IMPORTANT:
 

Applications submitted prior to February 2, 2024 will NOT BE considered.